🍋 Money, Sweat, and Cheers

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Good Morning and Happy Friday! BuzzFeed stock plunged 20% yesterday as the media company abruptly shut down BuzzFeed News. Twitter is cracking down on verified non-subscribers, and has begun stripping blue verification check marks from legacy accounts (pour one out for Cristiano Ronaldo).

If you were a Facebook user from May 2007 to Dec 2022 you can now apply for a share of a $725M privacy lawsuit settlement. Time to cash in on your online stalking! And the airline industry is facing turbulence this summer as an unprecedented surge in demand collides with a severe shortage of pilots.

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1. Story of the Day: Money, Sweat, and Cheers

The sports industry has emerged as a popular investment area for private equity firms seeking to diversify their portfolios and tap into the growing demand for sports content and experiences.

The amount of money raised by private equity and venture capital firms for sports-related investments has been on a steady rise, peaking at a staggering $91.78 billion raised in 2021.

This trend has led to intense competition amongst investors for successful or potentially successful teams, broadcasting, streaming rights, and other related assets.

However, as competition intensifies and pricing pressure increases in more popular sports like football and basketball, private equity firms are turning to lesser-known segments such as rugby, where risks are higher, but pricing pressure is lower. By doing so, they are able to differentiate themselves in a crowded market and potentially secure higher returns.

Moreover, with the loosening of laws governing betting on games in the U.S. and the expansion of streaming content, the sports industry has become an even more attractive investment target for private equity firms. Unlike public securities markets or higher interest rates, the value of sports properties tends to remain unaffected by market volatility, making it an appealing option for investors during times of economic uncertainty.

2. Markets Rundown

Stocks closed lower as earnings illuminate recession concerns.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) Chegg ($CHGG) +6% after the company announced a ChatGPT integration.

• (–) Tesla ($TSLA) -10% after profit concerns, drop in net income.

• (–) AT&T ($T) -10% after revenue miss and poor subscriber growth.

Private Dealmaking

• CoreWeave, a cloud computing platform, raised $221 million

• Tonal, a weight training startup, raised $130 million 

• Cortica, an autism care provider, raised $75 million

• Unchained, a provider of financial services

• for Bitcoin holders, raised $60 million 

• Semgrep, a code security firm, raised $53 million

• SpecterOps, a cybersecurity solutions provider, raised $25 million

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Enjoy targeted 8% dividends and a 14% targeted total return with appreciation from hand-picked, stunning vacation homes – starting with a $2,500 minimum – without having to buy a property, change light bulbs or deal with guests. And for a limited time, new REIT investors may get an opportunity to invest in Wander’s next round of funding.

Explore this investment.

3. Top Reads

• What we learned about banking conditions (Axios)

• When Apple comes calling, it’s the Kiss of Death (WSJ)

• Taylor Swift sidestepped FTX lawsuit by asking a simple question (CNBC)

• Banking gets a bit narrower (BB)

• Finance leaders warn interest rates are squeezing low-income countries (CNBC)

• Tesla is backed into a corner (YF)

• The D’Amelio family won’t buy TikTok, but they thought about it (TC)

• Wall Street’s deal making lull crimps earnings at bulge brackets (WSJ)

• Silicon Valley Bank’s business as unusual (Axios)

• Bed Bath & Beyond preparing for bankruptcy filing within days (WSJ)

4. Shortform Book of the Day: The Status Game

Across the world, from Papua New Guinea to Tokyo and Manhattan, humans compete for status.

Through games of dominance, virtue and success, it’s an obsession that has driven the best and worst of us: the Renaissance and the Industrial Revolution as well as spree killers and tyrants at the gates of Europe.

But what makes status an all-consuming prize? And how can we wield our desire for it to improve our relationships, win social media battles and be the best in the workplace?

A breathtaking rethink of human psychology, The Status Game will change how you see others – and how you see yourself.

“Whenever people use a word so often that they abbreviate it, it is clearly central to their moral and emotional vocabulary.”

Read More Books in Finance, Economics, and More with Shortform

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5. Short Squeez Picks

• The tea framework of productivity

• How to create luck

• What is the shape of your skills?

• How to become uncomfortable with uncertainty

• 6 tips to become a better human now

6. Daily Visual: Where Marijuana is Legal

As of April 2023

_{Source: Axios}

7. Daily Acumen

A significant barrier to achieving success is the apprehension of seeming silly.

As we learn to walk, we experience numerous tumbles until we finally master the skill. We may seem awkward until we no longer do. This is the learning process.

Yet, as grown-ups, we tend to convince ourselves that failure in front of others is undesirable, preventing us from attempting activities that could potentially make us look silly.

In prosperous times, individuals who aggressively commit to investments appear to thrive, causing a more cautious financial approach to seem nonsensical.

However, only those who have strategically positioned themselves can benefit when the prosperity subsides.

In many instances, the key to reaping life's rewards lies in the willingness to appear silly in the short term.

8. Memes of the Day

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